


NO PETS ALLOWED

by thedovahcat



Series: The Run-Arounds [2]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-10
Updated: 2017-01-10
Packaged: 2018-09-16 14:06:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9275240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thedovahcat/pseuds/thedovahcat
Summary: Cat finds her cat and wants to bring it along on their search for the Captain but Nick's got opposite feelings on the matter.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This one didn't really have a resolution, it was more just a one shot before I got hooked on writing these short little scenarios for my Sole. Enjoy!

A part of the ceiling crumbled and fell onto the floor in front of them as the crooked screen door swung open with an obnoxious bang.

“Home sweet home! Or…ok, so I haven’t been here in a while I know but it’s still a nice little place! C'mon lemme show ya around!” Catrene waved an arm and walked on inside, stepping over the chunk of nearly disintegrated plaster.

Nick stood at the doorway, unsure what to really think about the situation. “I don’t think we should-”

“WOAH-HOH, sweet place! I wish I had a summer home this big! Or one at all!” Hancock stood on his tip-toes to peek over Nick’s shoulders before ducking under his arm and sauntering in after their charge.

The detective narrowed his eyes somewhat and tried to grab him, but missed. “We don’t know what’s IN here-”

“Nothing’s in here!” Catrene called back from another room, pushing a wheelchair out into the hallway. “Er- that’s not true, there’s lots of junk in here. The sign out front says ‘convalescent home’. What’s that?”

“It’s where they send elderly people when people don’t wanna take care of them anymore.” The synth answered, sticking his hands into his pockets and glancing around, taking it all in. “…Don’t do that,”

“What?” Hancock paused in his rifling through an old drawer. The only interesting thing he’d managed to find was a can opener. “This place’s got some good scrap fer a few things I’d think. Hey Cat, ’s there any food around here?”

“Try the kitchen!”

The mayor abandoned the lobby once he located the way to said kitchen, leaving Nick to his own devices.

The synth sighed loudly and looked up and at a hole in the ceiling. It looked like there was a second floor to the place. Otherwise, his sensors weren’t picking up on anything dangerous. No raiders, no runaway, rogue robots, no Deathclaws and no gigantic, buzzing, death-bugs. Still, he didn’t exactly consider this place at all safe.

“So are we looking for something here or what?” He asked loudly, waiting for some kind of response. A full thirty seconds passed without a single word from either of them. “WELL??”

Catrene emerged from one of the rooms again, back first. “WHAT? Oh, yeah, we’re just here to pick something up and then we can get a move on again!”

“What’s that you got?”

“Nothing! Just stay there-”

“No, no… what is it-” Nick approached and reached out, grabbing her by the shoulder and spinning her around gently. In the girl’s arms were cans. Cans of WHAT, he had no idea. They didn’t even have labels.

“You seen a can opener anywhere? I kept one somewhere around here…”

“What’re all these for?” The synth picked one up, turning it over trying to find a date or any bit of information that could at least give a hint as to what was in them. The cans that is.

“It’s FOOD, ok?”

“FOOD? OH BOY CUZ I CAN’T FIND ANY!” Hancock stuck his head out of the kitchen, flinging an old dish towel aside without any care. “I’ve got a severe case of the munchies here-”

“This ISN’T FOR YOU!”

“WHAT? Then what’s it for?? Is it like, motor oil instead? It is, isn’t it?”

“Just wait there. BOTH of you.” Catrene moved towards the lobby’s front desk quickly, dumping the cans on top of it haphazardly and plucking one up before looking around. “AH-HAH- there it is.” She swiped the can opener and proceeded to open one of the cans.

Almost immediately a pungent smell filled the air. Something fishy and meaty. Nick had no reaction whereas Hancock quickly put his arm over his nose-hole. “DAMN, what in the world- hey I’m not gonna eat that- you shouldn’t either really. What IS that?”

“I’m gonna go out on a limb and say maybe pet food…”

“Bingo! OK COME AND EAAAT!”

They all waited in silence for a few moments before the tiniest of meows could be heard. Then, there came more silence, another meow, the sound of claws clicking on wood and stepping over things. From one of the holes in the ceiling, emerged this fuzzy, dirty and almost shaggy looking feline. It hopped down onto a wall shelf and found its way down to the floor where the now-open can lay.

“Hi there!” Cat leaned down and gave the cat a good petting before shoving the can in front of it. “Missed me? Glad you’re still here!”

Hancock raised a brow (whatever remnants he HAD of one) and looked over at Nick. The synth eyed him only briefly. One of them had to say something.

“Well go on you do it, I’m not good at this stuff.” The mayor mumbled, giving Nick a hard nudge.

“Here I thought you didn’t care about WHAT came flying out of your mouth.”

“Well yeah, with assholes and such, that’s fine. But not THIS,”

Nick sighed loudly, removing one hand from his coat pocket. “I hope you don’t intend to take that little fella along. We can’t keep pets while we’re traveling.”

“Huh? Why not?? It probably gets really boring here, and besides, I needed to come back for him anyway! I’ve been gone a while, I’m surprised he didn’t just up and leave!” The cat devoured the contents of the can before meowing loudly, practically begging for more.

“Look, I know, but it’s not… it’s not good for the cat out there. It’ll be safer here.”

“But what’ll he EAT?!”

“Well he seems to have found SOMETHING, look how fat he is.”

Hancock snickered slightly before Nick shot him a glare. “Uh- I hate to play devil’s advocate here but I guess he’s right. Wouldn’t want the lil’ guy to get blown up or shot by a raider. I’d feel bad.”

“But-” Catrene’s brows furrowed, not really wanting to leave the feline at the home. “Well can we just set up and make base here? Or-”

“We’re only out here on this wild goose chase to help you find that captain you keep talking about-”

The mayor snorted. “No it’s because you’re scared we’ll end up in a ditch somewhere-”

“Quiet.” Nick continued, “Cat… I’d rather not have us wasting our time getting side-tracked every five minutes with something else…I just wanna find our man and be done with it…ok? The cat’ll have to stay here, for its own good. That’s my final word on it.”

Catrene frowned hard, stood up and took the cat with her. The cat didn’t seem to mind really, being too busy licking its lips and all. “Yeah well, fine then I guess I just won’t go anywhere.”

“Wait that’s not- HEY!”

A door slammed hard and Hancock flinched. “Oof, way to go, Nick.”

“What? You KNOW I’m right about this. We can’t take any animals with us.”

“I know, but I mean…Look I know ok? Just,” Hancock tapped the floor with the tip of one of his boots. “Well I dunno. Maybe we can just go back to Diamond City or something instead,”

“And have this whole hunt be a waste of time? I’d at least like to have SOMETHING become of it. So I don’t feel like running in circles like a radstag without its heads.”

“Eesh, that’s all you think of this as?”

The synth paused, backing down slightly. He could see the mayor’s point now, even without saying it. “Technically, yes that’s all I’m here for.”

“Look I ain’t gonna tell you nothing cuz I agree with you on the cat, but you gotta lighten up just a little bit. She’s kinda uh…Sensitive.”

Nick almost sneered at the comment. “What happened to that guns-blazing-attitude you had? I thought you hardly cared about how anyone felt other than yourself really.”

Hancock shifted, not at all amused. “Oh I care about a lotta things and a lotta people Nick. I ain’t that heartless.” He turned his head to spit off to the side. “Didn’t think YOU thought I was like that though, just some insensitive-”

“That’s not what I said.”

“Yeah, well, you were implying it.” The ghoul turned away briefly, his shoulders falling just slightly. “Just take it easy, ok? That’s all I’m gettin’ at here. Not makin’ personal jabs or whatever.” At that, Hancock turned on his heels and headed back towards the front door.

“Where are you going?” Nick didn’t turn around to watch him go. Instead, he just started into the hallway.

“Outside. I’m upset.” At least he was being honest about it.

Once the door clicked behind him, the old detective looked down at the floor, then at his scuffed shoes. His metallic hand came up as he readjusts his hat slightly, resisting the urge to sigh yet again.

“That makes two out of three.” He muttered.


End file.
